PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- Richard Spencer, now in his fourth month as U.S. Secretary of the Navy, got his first in-person look at Ingalls Shipbuilding Thursday as he and other officials toured the Pascagoula shipyard.

Spencer, who was sworn in as the 76th Secretary of the Navy in August, was joined on the tour by Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo, Huntington Ingalls CEO Mike Petters and Ingalls president Brian Cuccias.

A native of Connecticut, Spencer joined the U.S. Marine Corps after college and served as an H-46 pilot until 1981, when he resigned from active duty to enter the private financial sector.

"Mike Petters and his team have done an amazing job of really bringing the art form of shipbuilding to a science," Spencer said. "If the U.S. Navy has a heart, I would say the shipyards are the blood pumping through that heart. It's on the shoulders of the U.S. Navy to make sure we keep these production lines hot and, therefore, efficient."

Ingalls, founded in 1938, began bidding on Navy work in the 1950s and in 1957 won a contract to build 12 nuclear powered submarines. In the decades since, the shipyard has produced in excess of 120 ships of various types for the Navy, with several more currently under construction.

"Ingalls is an amazing shipyard in the size, depth and talent that's here," Spencer said. "The workforce is one of the key elements that makes it a critical part of the Navy infrastructure."

Cuccias was appreciative of Spencer's visit.

""We appreciate Secretary Spencer taking the time to visit our shipyard and discussing the processes and skills our shipbuilders have in building quality ships for the Navy," Cuccias said. "Everything we do is in partnership with our Navy customer, and it is a pleasure to be able to highlight the efforts of our workforce to Navy leadership."

Palazzo, meanwhile, noted Ingalls will continue to be a key player as the Navy seeks to expand and modernize its fleet.

"I'm glad that we have a Secretary who joins me in acknowledging the men and women here at Ingalls are the greatest shipbuilders on earth," Palazzo said, "who build the greatest warships on earth, for the greatest military on earth."

Ingalls Shipbuilding and its sister shipyard in Newport News, Va., are the nation's largest military shipbuilding company. Ingalls Shipbuilding is Mississippi's largest private employer.